Fruit-basket.



W. P. ANGELO.

Patented Mar. 7, 1911.

awe/whoa rnz mums PETERS cm, WASHINGTON, v. c.

WALLACE PURIVIORT ANGELO, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

FRUIT-BASKET.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed February 24, 1910.

Patented Mar. '7, 1911.

Serial No. 545,637.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WVALLAon P. ANGELO, a citizen of the United States, residing at San Francisco, in the county of San Francisco and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fruit-Baskets, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawing.

This invention relates to improvements in baskets, commonly styled fruit baskets, and has for its primary object the provision of a basket of this character made of wood veneer having the upper edges thereof reinforced to strengthen and preserve the desired shape of the same, and the union of the reinforcing means with the edge of the veneer being such as to effectually prevent separation thereof under the usual wear and tear to which devices of the character stated are subjected.

The invention contemplates the provision of a reinforcing edge obviating the necessity of using tacks, nails or any fastening devices, thus dispensing with the expense and inconvenience incident to the use of such devices, and enabling a convenient and inexpensive application of the reinforce to the edge of the basket.

I am aware that heretofore in this art baskets have been reinforced at their edges by slipping a U-shaped piece of tin over the edge of the basket and crimping or bending the flanges of the tin against the material of which the basket is formed. In baskets of this character, however, a serious disadvantage constantly encountered is the comparative ease with which the reinforce is knocked or forced from place, correspondingly impairing the basket and frequently rendering the same entirely useless attended by corresponding expense and annoying inconvenience. Again, in the construction to which I have alluded the reinforce is readily bent in a lateral direction causing the basket to lose its desired contour or shape, and rendering the same not only displeasing in appearance but greatly impairing the facility with which it is desired such baskets may be nested and shipped when not filled with the goods, to receive which they are designed.

The present invention has been inspired to improve the basket of the prior art referred to in overcoming the disadvantages herein noted.

In carrying the invention into practical effect, a convenient embodiment of the invention embraces a basket formed of veneer or what is known in the art as slices, having its edges surrounded by a metal binding embracing said edges, the binding being curved transversely to resist bending thereof in a lateral direction, and more specifically the marginal portions of the veneer or slices being correspondingly curved or deflected, and the flanges of the binding pressed into firm engagement with the said marginal portions to interlock the edges of the basket with the binding thus efiectually preventing separation of the two. To better enable a complete understanding of the invention, I have in the accompanying drawings illustrated said embodiment of the invention, and from an inspection of the same in connection with the detail description hereinafter contained, the improved features of construction and arrangement will be apparent.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of the basket, Fig. 2 is a sectional view through the same, and Fig. 8 is an enlarged sectional view through a fragmentary portion of the basket and the reinforcing binder.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, wherein like reference characters designate corresponding parts in the several views, A represents a basket composed of two sheets of wood veneer or slices disposed at right angles to each other and having overlying bottom portions a, b and upturned side portions 64, Z). It is of course to be understood that, so far as the special formation of these parts is concerned, the arrangement may be different from that shown, and any suitable or preferred material may be used in lieu of the wood veneer or slices.

0 is a metallic reinforce entirely surrounding the upper or marginal edges of the sides, securing the sides together, as shown in Fig. 1. The reinforce is formed of U- shaped sheet metal providing flanges c, o separated to form a space for the reception of the raw edges of the body portion of the basket, and curved upwardly and outwardly to strengthen the metallic formation against lateral bending and to give a rounded margin around the basket. The engagement of the reinforce with the basket is best illustrated in Fig. 3 of the drawings, wherein it is seen that the deflection of the reinforce is at an angle of approximately 45 whereby both of the flanges and intermediate edge of the body portion are bent intermediate the upper and lower edges of the flanges to afford a substantial interlock between these parts. forcibly pressed toward each other and against the basket edges to embed in the latter as at D and again as at D, the intermediate portion of the flange a being crimped into the wood as at E on a line opposite to a slightly bulged intermediate portion 6 on the flange 0, so that at this portion the wood is of its normal thickness, or expanded relative to the compressed portions of the wood, thus providing an enlargement or interlock at said point. At the connected end of the flanges 0, c, the same is rounded to constitute a bead F also to accommodate the normal thickness of the wood affording a second interlock at this point.

The general contour of the reinforce being a rounding one in an outward direction, the margins of the wooden slices or veneer are not cracked or broken, and the interlocking of the parts as described, effectively prevents pulling of the metallic reinforce from the edge of the basket.

An ancillary feature of importance inherent in the construction resides in the fact that the rounded or beaded edge F and the rounded or bulged portion E project in op- The flanges 0, c are.

posite directions beyond the planes of the Vertical lower parts of the flanges 0, 0 so that extraneous objects are deflected away 5 from said lower parts and thus prevented from engagement with the raw or free edges of the binding, which engagement would tend to loosen the binding or force the same from place.

While I have herein referred specifically to fruit baskets, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the invention is capable of embodiment in forms and devices other than that disclosed herein without in the least departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

A fruit basket of the character described composed of wood veneer having its edges reinforced by a metallic binding embracing said edges, portions of the flanges of the binding being projected outwardly in opposite directions to constitute deflecting surfaces beyond the vertical planes of the raw edges of the binding, substantially as and for the purpose described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WALLACE PURMORT ANGELO.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

